Sean Elliott

Sean Elliott

Vice President — Advocacy and Safety EAA

Sean joined the EAA Staff in April of 1996. After 4 years of serving as the Executive Director and President for EAA’s affiliate, the National Association of Flight Instructors, Sean took over EAA’s Aircraft Operations and Air Tours in 2000. As the head of EAA Aircraft Operations, Sean is responsible for the development and implementation of pilot training and standardization in EAA’s fleet. In addition, the aircraft maintenance department is part of his organizational responsibilities. Oversight of a national B-17 tour, national Ford Tri-Motor(s) tour, and the annual carriage of over 16,000 passengers are all part of what EAA accomplishes with its very special fleet of aircraft and is a significant part of Sean’s duties at EAA.

On the Government Advocacy side, Sean has been Vice President of Advocacy and Safety since December of 2010. With this responsibility, he manages EAA’s government affairs offices at both EAA headquarters and in Washington, D.C. He is responsible for reviewing and analyzing government policy on the federal, state, and local levels that affect recreational aviation, as well as advocacy for EAA members and private individuals who build and fly aircraft for recreation.

Sean is a pilot, instructor, and check airman in most of EAA’s vintage and experimental fleet. He is a Specialty Aircraft Examiner and conducts type ratings in EAA’s B-17. Some of the interesting aircraft that Sean has flown include: 1929 Ford 4-AT-E Tri-Motor, 1927 Ryan NYP “Spirit of St Louis Replica”, North American T-6, North American P-64 (experimental auth), Douglas DC-3 (type rated), and Boeing B-17 (type rated). In 2017 Sean began flying the new B-29 Doc for the Wichita based “Friends of Doc” operations group.